Nathan\u2019s Famous, which opened as a 5-cent hot dog stand in Coney Island more than a century ago, has been sold to packaged meat giant Smithfield Foods in an all-cash $450 million deal, the companies announced Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Smithfield, which has held rights to produce and sell Nathan\u2019s products in the U.S. and Canada and at Sam’s Clubs in Mexico since 2014, will acquire all of Nathan’s outstanding shares for $102 each.<\/p>\n
What You Need To Know<\/p>\n
Nathan\u2019s Famous, which opened as a 5-cent hot dog stand in Coney Island more than a century ago, has been sold to packaged meat giant Smithfield Foods in an all-cash $450 million deal, the companies announced Wednesday
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Smithfield, which has held rights to produce and sell Nathan\u2019s products in the U.S. and Canada and at Sam’s Clubs in Mexico since 2014, will acquire all of Nathan’s outstanding shares for $102 each
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Nathan Handwerker opened the first Nathan\u2019s hot dog stand on Coney Island in 1916 with a $300 loan, according to the company.\u00a0The restaurant sits on same lot where Handwerker opened his first hot dog stand
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Nathan\u2019s has an outsized cultural presence in the U.S. both because of its history and the famous, or infamous, hot dog-eating contest held at its flagship Coney Island shop, where contestants from around the world gather every July 4 to see who can down the most hot dogs in 10 minutes<\/p>\n
Like almost every food company, Nathan\u2019s has been under significant inflationary pressure. Nathan’s sales costs of branded products rose 27% compared with last year in its most recent quarter, the company said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. There was a 20% increase in the average cost per pound of hot dogs, it said.<\/p>\n
Nathan Handwerker opened the first Nathan\u2019s hot dog stand on Coney Island in 1916 with a $300 loan, according to the company. After opening a handful of other locations around New York over the years, the Handwerker family sold the Nathan\u2019s Famous business to investors in 1987. The franchise has continued to expand.<\/p>\n
Nathan\u2019s has an outsized cultural presence in the U.S. both because of its history and the famous, or infamous, hot dog-eating contest held at its flagship Coney Island shop, where contestants from around the world gather every July 4 to see who can down the most hot dogs in 10 minutes.<\/p>\n
The restaurant sits on same lot where Handwerker opened his first hot dog stand.<\/p>\n